Telephone-recorder.



R. H. GREENLAW.

TEL'EPHONE RECORDER.

APPLICATION FILED \APR. 5, I915.

Patented Jan. 2,1917.

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R. H. GREENLAW.

TELEPHONE RECORDER.

APPLICATION FILED APR. 5, 1915.

Patented J an. 2, 1917.

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RUPERT H. GREENLAW, 0F LAWRENCE, MASSACHUSETTS.

TELEPHONE-RECORDER.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Jan. 2, Milt.

Application filed April 5, 1915. Serial No. 19,374.

To all whom it may concern:

Be i known that I, RUPERT H. GREEN- LAv-J, a citizen of the United States, residing at Lawrence, in the county of Essex and State of Massachusetts, have invented a certain ne and useful Telephone-Recorder, of which the following is a specification.

This invention is a telephone recorder, and the principal object of the invention is to produce a mechanism which will record the operations of a telephone instrument, 7;. 6., the number of calls sent and received, etc.

A further object of the invention is to provide a device of the class specified which will be comparatively simple, yet, withal, positive and unfailing in its operation, and so constructed that the same may be mounted upon a telephone instrument without necessitating the altering of the parts of said instrument.

The present invention enables a subscriber to know at any time whether or not he has exceeded the number of calls for which he has contracted, and also enables him to eliminate all unnecessary and personal calls. hL-loreover, he is apprised at all times of the exact number of calls sent, and, consequently, knows how many are still due him :ithout exceeding the number for which he contracted. Furthermore, by following up the number of calls sent through any particular period or periods the contractor is enabled to know what his average telephone business amounts to, and from this, he may, in the future, contract for a larger or smaller service, all of which results in a considerable financial saving.

The device of the present invention is quickly attached to any desk telephone instrument, is light and of minimum dimensions, and, consequently, does not interfere, in any way, with the use of the telephone.

A salient feature of the present invention resides in the fact that the difierent operations of the telephone instrument may be selectively recorded so that the number of calls received or sent, within a predeten mined time, may be ascertained at any time.

The invention, broadly speaking, embodies suitable recording mechanism in combination with means operable by the withdrawal of the receiver from its supporting hook, and its replacement thereon, which receiver operated means is adapted to cooperate with the recording mechanism for the purpose of actuating the same.

In one of its practical forms, the invention embodies recording mechanism adapted to be mounted upon the telephone instrument, which recording mechanism is provided with a cooperating projecting arm ex tending into operative relation with the receiver hook of the instrument. Said arm is normally extended by the action of suitable tension means, but is adapted to be maintained in its retracted position by the receiver when positioned upon the hook. When the receiver is removed from the hook, as in the act of conversing over the telephone, the extension member becomes extended to form a barrier to the hook, whereby the replacement of the receiver upon said hook is precluded until the operation has been recorded.

Features of the invention, other than those specified, will be apparent from the following specification read in conjunction with the accompanying drawings.

In the accompanying drawings 1 have illustrated diilerent practical embodiments of the invention, but the constructions shown therein are to be understood as illustrative, only, and not as defining the limits of the invention.

Referring to the drawings, Figure 1 is a rear elevation of a telephone instrument showing a device of the preferred embodi ment of my invention mounted in operative position thereon. Fig. 2 is an enlarged detail view of a portion of Fig. 1, the back wall of the casing, in which the recording mechanism is mounted, being removed in the interest of clearness. Fig. 8 is a transverse section through the recording mechanism, said section being taken on line 33 of Fig. 2. Fig. 4 is a face view of the easing containing the recording mechanism. Fig. 5 is a transverse plan section taken on line 55 of Fig. 1, and Fig. 6 is a perspective View illustrating one manner of supporting the recording mechanism upon a telephone instrument.

Referring to the drawings, A indicates a telephone instrument provided with the usual standard a, to which is pivotally secured the hook a adapted to support the receiver B. The instrument may be of any well-known, conventional type, but I have shown, for the purpose of illustration, an instrument well-known as a portable desk telephone.

A casing C is rigidly secured in any suitable and convenient manner to the standard a of the instrument. as by the clamping strap 0, Figs. 1 and 2. Mounted for longitudinal sliding movement in a supporting bearing (Z, within the casing, is a push rod D which extends through one of the lateral walls of the casing, and is pivotally secured to a link D. Intermediate the bearing (Z and the point of pivoting with the link D, a shoulder d is formed upon push rod D, and a spring (Z is coiled about said rod with its opposite ends against bearing cl and shoulder (Z. This spring is of the compression type, and normally serves to force the push rod D to its extended position exteriorly of the casing C. The link D is of such length that, when the rod D is in its extended position, the outer end of said link will reach substantially to the free end of the receiver hook at. The outer end of link D is provided with a lateral extension (Z so that, when the link is in its extended position, the laterally projecting portion (Z will extend across the open end of hook a, and serve in the capacity of a gate to preclude the positioning of the receiver B upon the hook without necessitating the depression of link D and rod D against the tension of spring (P. For maintaining the link in its proper position at all times, supporting bracket E is rigidly secured to the hook a, and at its free end is provided with a collar 6 which loosely embraces the link D intermediate its ends, thereby providing a guide or keeper through which the link is adapted to freely slide.

In the operation of the telephone instruments now in vogue, the hook is adapted for vertical pivotal movement. The hook is adapted to be maintained in its depressed position by the weight of the receiver when the same is in place, but is adapted to rise under the action of a spring, upon the removal of the receiver, to close the electric circuit of the telephone line. It is to allow of this movement of the hook that the link D is pivoted to push rod D, and said link is precluded from binding at its pivotal point by having the bracket E loosely engaged with said link. Positioned upon the inner end of rod D is a projecting finger f in the path of which is positioned the power arms of two bell crank levers F, F mounted for-pivotal movement on the back wall of the casing C. These bell crank levers are normally maintained in their neutral positions by means of balance leaf springs f, f. Positioned adjacent the work arm of the bell crank lever F is stop plate G mounted for longitudinal sliding movement upon the back plate of the casing by means of a pair of keepers g; The plate G- is so shaped and proportioned that, in one of its positions, shown in full lines in Fig. 2, a portion of said plate will underlie the work arm of the bell crank F, whereas in its other position,

crank may be oscillated in counter clockwise direction against the tension of spring f. However, when plate Gr 1s 1n 1ts operative posltion, such osclllatlon of said bell crank will be effectually precluded. The

plate G is adapted to be moved from its idle to its operative position through the medium of a further bell crank g, the work arm of which is pivotally secured to plate G, as at 9 and the power arm of which is normally in engagement with the work arm of the bell crank lever F.

In the embodiment of the invention herein shown and described, plate G is shifted from its operative to its inoperative position by means cooperating with the recording mechanism as well as recorder actuating means, next. to be described. Extending through the upper wall of the casing is a push button I provided with a stem i'which extends into the casing, and is provided near its free end with a rack 2" adapted to mesh with the pinion 2' mounted on a transverse shaft i The push button I is normally maintained in its outwardly extended position by means of a spring 6* which engages with the bearing within the casing, and at its opposite end with the under side of the push button. In a similar manner push buttons J and K protrude through the side of the casing, are provided with inwardly extending stems y' and is, and have racks 7" and 7a which mesh with gears j 70', mounted .on the shafts 7' and 71: respectively. The springs 7' and 70 serve to maintain their respective push buttons in outwardly extending position.

Each of the gears i j and 70 are loosely mounted upon their respective shafts, but adjacent each gear is fixedly mounted upon the shaft ratchet wheel i y' 70 with which .pawls 2' 7' 70', mounted upon the respective gears, are adapted to cooperate. The pawls are held in engagement with their respective ratchet wheels by leaf springs. It will thus bemanifest that, when any push button is depressed against the tension of'its extending spring, the corresponding gear will'be rotated for a predetermined extent, but as soon as the finger is withdrawn from the push'luitton, said push button will return to' its normal, extended position. During 'the return movement, however, the pawl will slide" idly over the ratchet, and impart no movement to the gear;

Upon the free ends ofthe shafts 2' 7' are mounted beveled'pinions; and it'is from these pinions that thecounting or recording mechanism is driven. Said counting and recording mechanism may be of any wellknown type, such, a. 9., the well-known cyclometer type which has" long been used in recording mileage on vehicles. Asa matter of fact, any counting mechanism which willprogressivelyregister one operation at a time and simultaneously sum them up, will suflice in the carrying out of the present invention. This mechanism,- however, forms no part of the present invention, and, in view of the fact that it is old and wellknown, applicant does not consider'it necessary to show and; describe the same. It will be understood, however, that, inthe embodiment of the invention shown, wherein it is desired to show the number of calls sent, received, and the numberoftimes that the line is busy, when it is desired to send a call, it would, in this embodiment of the invention, be necessary to provide three recorders, one of which would be positioned before each of the windows o in front'of the casing. These recorders are driven from the beveled pinions of the respective shafts 2' 7' 70 In such construction, an operator may, at any time, ascertain the number of calls by simply glancing at the windows a It is desirable, in the preferred embodi ment of the invention illustrated to provide means whereby the operation of any push button will shift the locking plate Ginto its idle position, and this is done through a series of levers, cooperating with each of the push buttons and the locking plate. E. 9..

a shoulder 1 i positioned upon the stem 2' of pushbutton I, which shoulder is adapted for engagement with the power arm of a bell crank L, the work arm of which rests against the end of the locking plateG. In like manner shoulder-s m m are positioned upon the stems j and 7c of the other push buttons, which shoulders engage with the power arm of a lever M, the work arm of which en ages with the lockingplate G at the same edge thereof as that engaged by the bell crank L. Thus, when any of the'push buttons are operated, as, e. 9., the button: I, the shoulder will cooperate with the bell crank L to shift theplate G into its idle position, or in the case of the buttons J K, the lever M will operate to shift the locking plate.

The operation of the device is as follows: Assuming that the receiver B is resting upon the hook a, the different parts being in the positions shown in Fig. 2, and it is desired to call a party, the operator removes the receiver from the hook, whereupon the circuit is completed through the telephone in the usual manner of making connection with central. Simultaneously with the removal of the receiver from the hook, the spring (Z forces the rod D and link D to their extended positions, during which movement the finger f idly operates the bell cranks F l which, immediately after the passage of said finger, return, under the operation of their respective leaf sprin s, to their normal positions. The extended position of the rod and link are shown in dotted position in Fig. 2. After the operator has finished talking and it is desirable to place the receiver upon the hook, it will be noted that the entrance to the hook is barred by the lateral end portion (Z of link D, and said link cannot be depressed because of the fact that the finger of rod D is in abutting relation with one arm of the bell crank F, the other arm of which is in engagement with the locking plate G. The link D, therefore, will be locked across the open end of the hook until the locking plate G is shifted to its idle position. One of the buttons I J K must be operated to shift the locking plate. The operator, having talked with the party he desired to call, knows from reading the directions upon the front of the casing that it is now necessary to press the call or se'nt button J. W hen the button J is pushed, the gear 7' is operated with the result that the recording mechanism is shifted to register one additional call, and at the same time the lever M is rocked upon its point of pivoting to slide the locking plate G into its idle dotted po sition. lVhen this has been done, the obstruction to pivotal movement of the bell crank F is no longer in place, and the receiver may now be hung upon the hook by exerting the slight pressure necessary to compress the spring (Z As the finger f of rod D, after having passed bell crank F, engages with the power arm of hell crank F, said latter bell crank is rocked into engagement with th power arm of bell crank o with the result that the power arm of latter bell crank is depressed. thereby shif ing the locking plate back into its operative position beneath bell crank F. When this has been accomplished, the parts will have all been returned to their initial positions.

It will be manifest from the foregoing that, in the operation of the telephone, it is hook.

- preclude the replacement of the receiver upon the telephone, until the nature of the call has been recorded.

The present invention is, of course, not re stricted to the precise construction herein shown and described, as minor changes may be made from time to time in adapting the invention to its various environments. E. g.,'it may be advisable to have the operation of the link and lever automatically record the call, irrespective of push buttons, which require manual manipulation. Moreover, while I have shown three indicating devices, it will be understood that the invention is 'not limitedto this number, but that one or more may be employed. If a single one is employed, the mechanism will, of course, be greatly simplified. In its broad aspect the invention embodies means cooperating with the hook of the receiver for registering the calls, and the invention is to be considered as broadly new as is commensurate with the appended claims.

The telephone instruments now used are of widely different contours, shapes, sizes, etc., and, accordingly, it is my desire to provide means whereby the device of the present invention may be secured upon any telephone instrument irrespective of size or shape. To this end, I have shown, in Fig. 6 of the drawing, a modified attaching means adapted to carry out this function. The casing G is provided at two of its corners adjacent the side of said casing which is adapted to abut the standard a of the instrument, with a pair of parallel, vertically extending rods 0 0. On the rod 0 is positioned a plurality of chains 0 which are adapted for a slidable movement longitudinally of the rod, and upon the rod 0 is positioned a pair of complementary clamping members 0. The clamping members are of the cam type, and are adapted to engage with any link of the chains 0, when in their open position, thereafter being adapted to be swung to their closed position as shown at the lower portion of the figure The chains are wrapped around the telephone, and conform with its contour, whereupon they are pulled tight and a link slipped over the respective clamping members, after which the clamping member is sprung into its locking position, thereby pulling the chains tight and securing the casing upon the instrument. Manifestly, with the attaching means of the class described, the device of the present invention may be secured to a telephone instrument having any shape, size or contour.

It has been heretofore suggested to provide telephone call meters which were adapted to be attached to a telephone standard, and embodying recording mechanism operable by the oscillating movement of the telephone hook. These devices are objectionable for many reasons, chief among which is the fact that in difierent telephones the oscillating movement of the hook Widely varies, and, for these and otherreasons, the structures referred to were impracticable, and never came into use. The present invention obviates the difficulties referred to, is simpler in construction than the prior art devices, and is positive in its operation.

It will be manifest from the foregoing that it is impossible for the operator to forget to actuate the counting mechanism, as the link precludes the replacement of the receiver upon the hook until after one of the recordingbuttons has been operated either during a telephone conversation or at the finish thereof. 1

Having thus fully described the invention, what I claim as new and desire to secure by'Letters Patent, is v l. A telephone recorder embodying, in combination, a slidable rod adapted to close the open end of the telephone hook when the receiver is removed therefrom, means for locking said rod in such position, and means dependent upon the registering of the operation of the telephone for releasing said rod to allow of the replacement of the receiver upon the hook.

2. telephone recorder embodying, in combination, a slidable rod adapted to close the open end of the telephone hook when the receiver is removed therefrom, means for locking said rod incsuch position, and means dependent upon the selective registration of the operations of the telephone for releasing said rod to allow of the replacement of the receiver upon the hook.

3. A telephone recorder embodying means for closing the open end of the telephone hook when the receiver is removed therefrom, means for locking said hook-closing means in such position, recording mechanism, and means for actuating said recording mechanism, said actuating means 00 operating with the locking means for releasing the same upon the actuation of the recording means. 7 I

i. A telephone recorder embodying counting mechanism, means for actuating said counting mechanism, means for obstructing the open end of the telephoneh'ook when the receiver is removed'therefrom, mechanism for locking said obstructing means in its obstructing position, and means co6pcrating with the operating means and with the locking mechanism for releasing the obstructing means to allow of the positioning of the receiver upon the telephone hook after the counting mechanism has been op erated.

5. A telephone recorder embodying recording mechanism, means for normally obstructing the open end of the hook of a telephone instrument, means for locking said obstructing means in its normal position, and selective mechanism for actuating said recording mechanism, said selective mechanism cooperating with the obstructing means to unlock the same when any of the parts of the selective mechanism are actuated.

6. A telephone recorder embodying a plurality of call recording mechanisms, push buttons associated with each of said recording mechanisms, in combination with a slidable rod, the free end of which is adapted to normally close the open end of the telephone hook to preclude the placement of the receiver thereon, means for locking said rod in its normal position, and means operable by any of the push buttOns for releasing said rod, whereupon the same may be depressed to allow of the placement of the receiver upon the hook.

7. In a telephone recorder, a casing, recording mechanism within said casing, means for actuating said recording mechanism, a slidable rod mounted interiorly of the casing and extending through the wall thereof into engagement with the receiver when the same is positioned upon the hook of the telephone, and means for impelling said slidable rod into a position to close the open end of the hook when the receiver is removed therefrom, in combination with means for locking the rod in its extended position, said locking means cooperating with the means for operating the recording mechanism whereby the actuation of said means releases the slidable rod, thereby allowing the same to be depressed when the receiver is positioned upon the hook.

8. A telephone recorder embodying means adapted for bodily contact with the receiver and movable therewith in the removal or replacement of said receiver upon the hook of the telephone, means for locking the receiver contacting means, recording mechanism, and means, dependent upon the operation of the recording mechanism, for releasing the locking means to allow of free movement of the receiver contacting means.

9. A telephone recorder embodying a casing provided with longitudinal, parallel rods, a plurality of chains slidably mounted on one of said rods, and a corresponding number of clamping members slidably mounted on the other rod whereby said standard and placed in engagement with the clamping members, whereupon the shifting of the clamping members to their locked positions pulls the chains taut for the purpose of rigidly securing the casing to the telephone standard.

10. A telephone recorder embodying a casing provided with longitudinal, parallel rods, a plurality of flexible tension members slidably mounted on one of said rods, and a correspondin number of clamping members slidably mounted on the other red whereby said tension members may be wrapped about a telephone standard and placed in engagement with the clamping members, whereupon the shifting of the clamping members to their locked positions pulls the tension members taut for the purpose of rigidly securing the casing to the telephone standard.

11. A telephone recorder embodying counting mechanism, means for actuating the same, and obstructing means, adapted to be released by the actuation of the counting mechanism, for normally precluding the re placement of the receiver upon the telephone hook after having been removed therefrom.

12. A telephone recorder embodying a plurality of counters, means for individually actuating said counters, obstructing means for normally precluding the replacement of the receiver upon the telephone hook after having been removed therefrom, and means for locking said means when in its obstructing position, said locking means being under the control of, and releasable by, the actuating means of any of the counters.

13. A telephone recorder embodying counting mechanism, means for actuating the same, a hook obstructing member for pre cluding the replacement of the receiver upon the telephone hook after having been removed therefrom, means for locking said member in its hook obstructing position, and means for releasing said member to allow of the replacement of the receiver on the hook.

14;. A telephone recorder embodying obstructing means for normally precluding the replacement of the receiver upon the telephone hook after having been removed therefrom, counting mechanism, and means cooperating with the receiver obstructing means for alloving of the replacement of the receiver on the hook, said means being also adapted to actuate the counting means.

15. A telephone recorder embodying obstructing means for normally precluding the replacement of the receiver upon the telephone hook after having been removed therefrom, counting mechanism, and means cooperating with the receiver obstructing means for allowing of the replacement of the receiver on the hook, said means being chains may be wrapped about a telephone also adapted to actuate the counting means Copies of this patent may be obtained for five cents each, by addressing the receiver is removed therefrom, whereby it is necessary to operate the gate before the receiver can be placed upon the hook, means for locking the gate in hook closing position, and means, operable by the actuation of the recording mechanism, for releasing the gate to allow of the replacement of the receiver.

In testimony whereof I have signed my name to this specification.

RUPERT H. GREENLAW.

Commissioner of Patents,

Washington, I). G. 

